Cargill is leveraging technology to improve transparency and sustainability in the cocoa supply chain.
The company has recently highlighted its latest effort and progress in improving transparency and sustainability in the five origin countries it sources cocoa from in a new report.
Through the Cargill Cocoa Promise, the company is realising the opportunities offered by technologies, such as mobile money, GPS mapping and digital data collection, which allow for greater transparency on how cocoa is grown and sourced from farmers.
The ‘Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate 2018-2019 Sustainability Progress Report’ highlights key milestones the company has made during 2018-19:
Utilising digital tools
With the use of barcoded cocoa bags and digital Cooperative Management Systems (CMS), 50% of sustainable cocoa beans in the global direct supply chain are now traceable from farm-to-factory. In 2018-2019, 151,190 metric tons of cocoa beans were tracked.
The CMS enables farmers organizations to manage loans, collect beans and check fixed versus variable costs. Also, starting in 2018-2019, all farmer organizations in the direct sourcing network in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire are now visible through an interactive Cargill Cocoa Promise Sourcing Partner Network map. Each of these farmer organisations benefit from Cargill Cocoa Promise programs.
Child labour monitoring
Implementation of child labour monitoring and remediation systems (CLMRS) to address child labour has significantly increased. In addition to Côte d’Ivoire, Cargill also deploys CLMRS now in Ghana and Cameroon, reaching a total of 58,800 farmers in 2018-2019.
This extends the reach from 7% to 29% of the total number of farms in the direct supply chain. In 2018-2019, Cargill also conducted a needs assessment for programs to address child labour in cocoa growing communities in Indonesia; a localized approach to CLRMS will follow in 2020.
GPS polygon mapping
GPS polygon mapping of 72% of all farmers in the direct supply chain, representing over 400,000 hectares of farmland, was completed. Cargill said it is “well on its way” to identify where the cocoa comes from, which areas may be at risk of deforestation and how to mitigate this risk through specific interventions.
Digital tools
Digital tools are providing cooperatives and cocoa farmers with information – such as digital farm development plans and market insights – to help improve their farming practices. In addition, the digital tools serve as a means to communicate with farmers during a crisis, such as the coronavirus pandemic.
Cargill’s digital farming tool is amplifying government safety and sanitation messages to help curb the spread of the virus in farming communities, it said.